Air Force leads the series, 21-1. The Falcons have won 21 straight dating back to the first meeting on Jan. 5, 1957 in the Denver Auditorium Arena. Western State won the initial meeting, 57-41. Air Force defeated Western State, 86-66, at the Academy in the last meeting Dec. 29, 2015.

The Falcons took control of the game early, utilizing an 18-0 run in the first half to build a 45-27 lead at the half. Air Force led by as many as 31 points midway through the second half before Falcon head coach Dave Pilipovich began to empty out his bench.

Junior forward Hayden Graham led three Falcons in double-figures scoring with a game-high 19 points. Graham had an efficient shooting night from the field, making 6-of-9 field goals, including a perfect 5-of-5 from three point range.

Sophomore guard Trevor Lyons added 14 points on a perfect 4-for-4 night from the field and senior center Zach Moer chipped in with 12 points and a game-high three blocked shots. Junior guard Zach Kocur scored nine points and dished out three assists and freshman guard Pervis Louder had six points and five rebounds in 12 minutes off the bench.

The Falcons shot 54.8 percent from the field, making at least half of their shots for the fourth time this season. Air Force also made 82.1 percent of its free throws, making 23-of-28. Western State (2-10) was led by reserve Pablo Barreiro came off the bench to score a team-high 12 points.

LAST WEEK

Air Force split a pair of road games. The Falcons fell at Indiana State, 74-64, Wednesday and defeated Denver, 61-59, in Denver Saturday.

LAST TIME OUT

Junior Pervis Louder broke a tie game with a 3-pointer and completed a drive with a thunderous dunk with 3.7 seconds left to lead Air Force past Denver, 61-59, Saturday afternoon in a non-conference men’s basketball game at Magness Arena in Denver Colo.

Air Force took its first lead of the game, 56-55, with a Lavelle Scottie 3-pointer with 1:59 left. Daniel Amigo tied the game at 56-all with 1:16 left with a free throw to set up Louder’s final heroics. He hit a three with 51 seconds left to make it 59-56, then following two free throws by Jake Holtzmann, took a handoff from Trevor Lyons and drove down the lane for the dunk. Denver turned the ball over with .8 seconds left and the Falcons inbounded the ball to seal it.

Ryan Manning scored a game-high 19 points and added five rebounds to lead the Falcons. Louder added a career-high 14 points and Lyons added five points and team highs of three assists and six rebounds. Air Force hit 38.2 percent from the field and just 25.0 percent from three and were out-rebounded, 37-30, but forced a season-high 23 turnovers, including 14 in the first half to overcome a 22-point deficit.

The victory snaps a 22-game road losing streak for Air Force, who won for the first time on the road since a 67-60 win at UC Davis Dec. 19, 2015. The Falcons improved to 1-2 on the road this season and posted their second straight win at Denver.

Denver was led by Amigo, who had 11 points and nine rebounds. Joe Rosga added 11 points before fouling out and Holtzmann chipped in with 10 points. DU shot 43.2 percent from the field, but just 29.4 percent in the second half.

The first half featured two different significant runs. Denver out-scored Air Force, 27-5, over the first 10 minutes. The Pioneers hit 10-14 FGs, while Air Force was just 2-11. Air Force used a 20-5 run to cut the lead to seven, 32-25, with 4:18 left in half. The Falcons hit 6-9 during the run while holding Denver to just 2-10. The Falcons finished the half with a 22-11 advantage in the final 10 minutes overall to cut the lead to 38-27 at the half.

Air Force trailed at the half, 38-27. The Falcons are 1-2 this season when trailing at the half.

Air Force snapped a 22-game road losing streak dating back to a 67-60 win at UC Davis Dec. 19, 2015. The victory is Air Force’s first away from home since beating Wyoming, 83-68, March 8, 2017 in the opening round of the Mountain West Championships in Las Vegas, NV. Air Force improved to 1-2 on the road this season.

Air Force improved to 25-26 all-time in the series vs. Denver. The Falcons have won two straight at Denver and two of the last three in the series overall.

Individual Notes

Sophomore Sid Tomes started for the first time this season and fifth time in his career. Tomes scored two points and had two rebounds.

Junior Ryan Manning scored a game-high 19 points to mark his team-leading fifth game in double figures this season. Manning has led the team in scoring four times this season. His 19 points are the second most by a Falcon this season, trailing the 20 he had vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff.

Junior Pervis Louder scored a career-high 14 points, including the game-winning dunk in the final seconds.

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